Vitamin E could cure cancer
A specific form of vitamin E using a unique delivery system led to tumour shrinkage within one day and almost total tumour disappearance after 10 days. The research team, from Glasgow and the Univeristy of Strathclyde, developed the vitamin E extract tocotrienol, and delivered to tumours via intravenous administration with the use of transferrin, which is a plasma protein that transports iron through the blood and whose receptors are present in large amounts in many cancers. Previous tocotrienol studies on tumours have not been positive, but none has used this new method of entrapping tocotrienol in a tumour-targeted delivery system and delivering it intravenously.
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Scotland to folate: We need you
A sudden rise in spina bifida cases in Scotland has prompted calls for all women of childbearing age to take folic-acid supplements, according to an article on the UK's Times Online. Folic-acid fortification in the US led to a marked decrease in spina bifida cases among newborn babies.
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Phospholipids entertain the brain
Cognitex significantly improved cognitive abilities related to attention by 19 per cent, memory by 17 per cent and complex activities of daily living by 20 per cent after two weeks, according to a new study. Cognitex is a cognitive brand by Life-Extension, which carries Enzymotec's SharpPS GOLD and Sharp-GPC phospholipids.
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Can resveratrol make the blind see?
Longevinex, a resveratrol-based finished product from Resveratrol Partners, significantly improved the visual acuity and night vision of an 80-year-old man in a case-control study. The product effectively removed cellular debris that accumulates in the eye with advancing age over the course of the 5-month study. The report was published in the December 2009 issue of Optometry.
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Identifying effective probiotics
Scientists have crystallised a protein that may help gut bacteria bind to the gastrointestinal tract. The protein could be used by probiotic producers to identify strains that are likely to be of real benefit to people.
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